Where Did the Name Marilyn Monroe Come From?

Marilyn was after stage actress Marilyn Miller (pictured above), and Monroe was her mother’s maiden name. There are various stories as to how the name change came about, and several people have claimed to have named her. The most common (and most likely true) version is that Fox talent scout Ben Lyon, who got Marilyn her first screen test, chose the name Marilyn. Either her mother Gladys, her guardian Grace McKee Goddard, or Marilyn herself suggested the last name, Monroe, according to various versions of the story. Norma Jeane began using the name in 1946 and legally changed to it in 1956.